Cheese case and knife.



y Nn.'667,4|3. Patented Feb. 5, 190|.

U. R. WEESE.

' CHEESE CASE AND KNIFE.

. (Appxiation med Apr. 14, 1900.)

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I UNITE STATES OTIS ROBERT WEESE, OF SYRAOUSE, OHIO.

CHEESE CASE AND KNIFE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 667,413, dated February5, 1901.

Application filed April 14, 1900. serial No. 12,915. KNO model.)

To zr/ZZ whom t may concern,.-

Be it known that I, Oris ROBERT WEEsn, a citizen of the United States,residing at Syracuse, in the county of Meigs and State of Ohio, haveinvented a new and useful Cheese Case and Knife, of which the followingis a speciiication.

My invention relates to cheese-cases, and more especially to oneprovided with a vertically-reciprocatory blade by means of which thedesired amount of cheese may be cut from the entire cheese; and itconsists in the improved construction and novel arrangement of parts ofthe same, as will be hereinafter more fully set forth.

In the accompanying drawings, in which the same reference-numeralsindicate corresponding parts in each of the views in which they occur,Figure 1 is a vertical sectional detail view of my improved cheese caseand knife arranged in operative position upon the counter, the doorbeing shown open in dotted lines. Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional viewlooking downward, the cheese being shown in dotted lines; and Fig. 3 isa detail view.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, 1 indicates my improvedcase, which may be of any suitable size, style, and finish, within whichis rotatably mounted a platform 2, upon which the cheese 3 is placed formanipulation. The cheese is held against rotation while it is being cutby means of a vertically-sliding clamp 4, the socket of which lits uponthe depending post or rod 5, which is preferably angular incross-section and has one face provided with ratchet-teeth 6. One sideof the clamp is slotted radially and longitudinally, as shown at 7, anda pawl 8 is pivotally secured therein, the upper end of which is adaptedto normally engage with the ratchet-teeth 6 and hold the clamp inpositive engagement with the cheese, and thereby prevent the latter frommoving. of the pawl is provided with a slot or notch 9, in which the tipof the knife 10 is adaptedto enter for swinging the pawl upon its pivotand releasing its opposite end from the ratchetteeth, and thereby permitof the clamp being raised from the cheese with the upward movement ofthe knife.

The knife is secured to the upper end of a vertically-movable bar 11,soas to extend downrIhe lower endA ward, and has its cutting edge beveledtoward the point and the heel, so as to form a slight angular projection12, which will enter the cheese in advance of the remaining portion ofthe blade, and thereby cause the passage of the knife through the cheesemuch easier than with a straight-edged knife. The tip of the knife ispreferably formed or provided with a slight projection or nose 13, whichengages with the notched portion of the pawl 8 when the knife is beingraised. The upper surface of the table or platform 2 is provided with anannular recess 14, the walls of which are inclined to substantiallycorrespond with the bevel or inclination of the edge of the knife, and,if desired, it may be lined or provided with lead or other suitablematerial to prevent the knife being dulled by Contact therewith, or thetable may be formed from wood or other desirable material. Antifrictiondevices, as rollers 15, are preferably located at suitable distancesapart in the upper surface of the base or bottom of the case, upon whichthe platform is revolved. A suitable pin 16 projects upwardly from thetop of the table or platform for the purpose of entering the cheese andretaining it in position thereon.

The bar 11, to which the knife is secured, is suspended at one edge ofthe case by means of a spring 17, which normally holds the knife at asuitable distance above the cheese to permit of the turning of thelatter, and its lower end is preferably secured to a treadle 18, whichmay be secured below the counter in any desired manner. However, Iprefer to arrange the treadle nearly parallel with the counter, so thatits free end will not project beyond the inner edge thereof and be inthe way of the attendants as they walk back and forth behind thecounter. The intermediate portion of the bar 11 is provided withgearteeth 19 and is passed down through the bottom of the case, and, ifdesired, through a suitable opening in the counter. A shaft 2O isjournaled within the base in bearings 21 and is provided with twopinions 22 and 23, one of which is adapted to be thrown into or out ofengagement with an annular rack 24 upon the bottom of the table orplatform 1 and the other one is adapted to be thrown into or out ofengagement with the gear-teeth 19, upon the bar 11. A spring 25 iscoiled IOO around the shaft and has one end secured thereto and theopposite end in engagement with one of the bearings, so as to normallyhold the pinions in engagement with their respective racks. A lever 26is pivotally secured in one side of the case, so as to project above thebase upon the outside of the case, in position to be moved back andforth by the operator, the lower end of the lever being pivotallyconnected with the outer end of the shaft in any desired manner.

As above described, it will be seen that by the use of my improved caseand knife the cheese can be protected from injury or damage by placingit wit-hin the case and closing the door, the walls of the case beingpreferably formed from some porous material-as, for instance,closelywoven wire-so as to permit a free circulation of air, but whichwill exclude mice, insects, dac. When a new cheese is put into the case,it is arranged so that its cen ter will lie directly above thepivotpoint or axle 27 of the platform and be forced down upon the pin16.

When it is desired to cut o any of the cheese, the handle or lever 26 isswung outward upon its pivot, so as to cause the pinions upon the shaft2O to engage -with their respective racksV ready for operation. Theknife, which normally is located at a slight distance above the top ofthe cheese, is then moved downward by the pressure of 'the foot of theoperator applied to the treadle, which will cause the rotation of theshaft a sufficient extent to rotate the table and carry the cheesearound upon the platform far enough to 'cause the knife to cut off thedesired quantity of cheese. As soon as the cheese has been rotated farenough the pinions are thrown out of engagement with their racks bymoving the upper end of the lever inward or toward the case. The knifeis then forced downward through the cheese by the continued pressureupon the treadle and the resultant downward movement of the knife-bar,the platform re- Inaining stationary during such subsequent movement.The rack upon the lower surface of the table is preferably made of smalldiameter and located very near the pivotpoint of the table, and thepinion 22 is formed of a sufficient diameter to cause the rotation ofthe table quite a distance with a very small downward movement of thebar and consequent rotation of the shaft. In this manner the platformand cheese can be rotated quite a distance during the movement of theknife from its point of rest to the top of the cheese, thereby renderingthe capacity of the instrument suicient for any amount of cheese, fromthe very smallest amount called for to the largest that will probably becalled for; but if it is not sufficient its capacity may be increased byreleasing the pinions from their racks and permitting the knife to beraised to its normal position and again lowered one or more times beforethe cut is made, the pinions being thrown into gear at each downwardmovement of the knife and released upon the upstro-ke. As the knife ismoved 'downward toward the cheese the clampll is forced down onto thecheese by means ofa coiled spring 2S with asufficient force to cause theteeth 29 upon its under surface to engage with the top of the cheese andhold it and the platform perfectly rigid and stationary during thepassage of the knife through the cheese. If desired, a nut 30 may belocated upon the post above the spring for the purpose of adjusting thetension of the latter and rendering it operative with cheese ofdifferent thicknesses, and a spring 3l may be arranged to engage withthe pawl 8 and cause it to be forcibly held in engagement with the teethof the post except when disengaged by the action of the knife.

By arranging the treadle longitudinally of the counterit will be out ofthe way for passing back and forth behind the counter, yet will beinconvenient position for operation when it is desired to use the knife.By locating the handle for manipulating the shaft and the pinions uponthe outside of the case the entire operation of adjusting the cheese andoperating the knife may be performed without opening the case, therebyonly requiring the case to be opened long enough to reach in and takeout the piece of cheese af ter'it has been severed, thus preventing theentrance of insects into the case.

Although I have shown what I consider to be the most desirable form forconstructing myimproved cheese case and knife, yet I reserve to myselfthe right to make s uch changes and alterations therein as will comewithin the scope of my invention.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. The combination, with a cheese-case provided with a rotary table, ofa clamp for holding the cheese, a lock for the clamp a reciprocatoryknife within the case adapted to engage with said lock and release thecheeseholding clamp, and adjustable means conne'cted with the knife' forpartially rotating the table, substantially as described.

2. The combination, with a case provided with a rotary table, of areciprocatory bar, the intermediate portion of which is provided withgear-teeth, of a knife at the upper end of the bar in position tooverhang the table, a longitudinally-movable shaft, the inner end ofwhich is provided with a connector which is adapted to be thrown intoand out of engagement with the table and the outer end is provided withapinion in position to be moved into and out of gear with thereciprocatory bar, and means for reciprocating said bar, substantiallyas described.

3. The combination, with a case provided with a rotary table,of anannular rack secured to the under side of the table, bearings in thebase of the case, a shaft therein, two pinions on the shaft, one ofwhich-is in de- IOO IIO

tachable engagement with the rack, a reciprooatory bar, the intermediateportion of which is provided with teeth adapted to engage with the otherpinion, a knife upon the upper end of the bar in position to overhangthe table, a lever for moving said shaft so as to throw said pinions outof engagement with the rack and bar respectively, a spring secured tothe shaft at one end and having its opposite end in engagement with oneof the bearings for normally holding said pinions in engagement with therack and bar,a treadle for moving the bar downward, and a spring formoving it upward, substantially as described.

4. The combination, with a case, of a rotary table mounted therein, thetop of which is provided with an annular recess, of a post dependingfrom the top of the case, a springactuated clamp on the post, areciprocatory bar yieldingly suspended from one side of the case, thetop of which is provided with a knife to overhang the table, the cuttingedge of the knife being beveled to correspond with the angle of theWalls of the recess in the table, and means for reciprocating the barand automatically rotating the table, substantially as described.

5. The combination, with a case, of a table rotatably mounted upon thebase, of a post depending from the top of the case in alinement with theaxis of the table, the lower portion of whichY is angular incross-section and one side is provided with teeth,of a clamp upon thepost, one side of which is slotted radially, a pawl pivoted Within saidslot, the upper end of which is adapted to engage with the teeth of thepost, of a spring on the post above the clamp and in engagementtherewith, means for varying the tension of said spring, a reciprocatorybar yieldingly suspended from one side of the case, a knife overhangingthe tableand adapted to enter the slot in the clamp, the tip of theknife being adapted to engage with the lower end of the pawl, and meansfor reciprocating the bar and automatically rotating the table,substantially as described.

OTIS ROBERT WEESE.

Witnesses:

W. J. LAWRENCE, E. H. KILLINGswoRTH.

